The Regions of Taladoun
Taladoun is the setting for dozens of cities, villages and settlements, not to mention the different ruins, dungeons, caves made into war camps for the more monstrous races and a myriad of other forms of living. However, all of these cultures and structures fall into place in one of the eight regions of Taladoun; The Frozen Tooth, the Fields of Glory, the Central Region, the Eastern Kingdoms, the Sumara Desert, the Wet Lands, Midland and the Southern Continent. These regions have been defined over the centuries of Taladoun's history, either by territorial disputes or geographical obstacles, such as mountain ranges or the ocean itself. The Frozen Tooth The Frozen Tooth is a barren, frozen wasteland that is under the control of Lissandra, one of the nine Demon Lords. While most of the Demon Lords maintain their home in the layers of the Abyss, Lissandra has found a much more accommodating home in the Tooth. Few members of the Great Race venture from what is now known as the Great Wall into the Tooth, due to the highly volatile landscape and creatures that reside there. Frost Trolls, Ice Giants, Orcs and Goblins that have become mean and bitter creatures with the cold, harsh weather all reside and owe allegiance to the Ice Witch. Of course, even with this control over most of the creatures of the Frozen Tooth, there is still fighting amongst different tribes and races. The Tooth isn't without it's more noble creatures, though. The Ursine are a race of sentient creatures that resemble large polar bears. These creatures are some of the older, wiser creatures in the world and have survived mostly by keeping to themselves in the frozen caves that line the shores of the Tooth. They are mortal enemies to the Frost Trolls and whenever members of the two races cross paths, the only outcome can be bloodshed. The Ursine are also very spiritual creatures. Some believe they have bonded with one of the great spirits of the land and it has granted them access to a mystic influence over their homeland, giving them ability to create or stop the hail storms that the Tooth is constantly plagued with, communicate with the beasts of the Tooth and other such abilities. The Tooth is void of any official means of economy. Those groups, factions or races that manage to get along may trade goods or food with one another, but there is no set form of currency or exchange rate. When it comes to religion in the Tooth, most of the monstrous races worship Lissandra or another Demon Lord or owe their allegiance to the Devil King or Zericks himself. The few batches of creatures not under the sway of these dark lords, such as the Ursine and some Orcs or Dwarves either pay homage to their patron God (Baur for Orcs, Korum for Dwarves) or worship the land itself. Some Ursine, however, do favor Kyros, God of Storms and pray to him for the chaotic favors he will bestow on his followers. Fields of Glory The Fields of Glory are a dangerous place indeed. Not only is the region the only buffer containing Lissandra's realm of the Frozen Tooth, but the region itself is involved with a seemingly never ending conflict between Lissandra's Death Frost Cult, the White Worg Tribe that travels the open areas of the Fields and the Blood Iron Clan that grips the northern part of the Fields. The three groups struggle for control over the Fields and regularly go to war over territory lines. The greatest resource to these three warring groups are the towns and settlements that maintain themselves in the Fields. The only settlement that doesn't pay tribute is the Great Wall, a militaristic city that is quite literally a great wall that separates the Fields from the Tooth. Both the White Worg Tribe and Blood Iron Clan have come to an agreement that fighting over or within the Wall would weaken it against Lissandra's forces and neither group would benefit from the possible repercussions of such a conflict. There are a total of six major towns in the Fields of Glory. The Great Wall on the western border, Gordiman Village in the north, Whitestone Citadel to the east of Gordiman Village, Sorcette east of Whitestone Citadel, Talmont which lies on the converging point of the region's three rivers and Port Varilon in the south along the shores that hold the Broken Isles Bay. Currently, Gordiman Village, Whitestone Citadel and Sorcette fall under the control of the Blood Iron Clan while Talmont and Port Varilon pay tribute to the White Worg Tribe. Lissandra's Death Frost Cult is rumored to have footholds everywhere in the Fields, though they are hard to find and even harder to keep a secret due to their "erase all enemies" mentality. The economy for the Fields of Glory is a surprisingly hardy one. The Whitestone Citadel mines Crystalium, a rare metal with mystical properties. Weapons forged from Crystalium are said to be able to freeze those they hit, provided the weapon is enchanted and created properly. The Dwarves of the Whitestone Citadel keep the secrets of this crafting process extremely well guarded, as they are the only ones able to produce the correct effect. Gordiman Village has a high trade in pelts, meats and other such goods, given they are the main source of such items in the Fields. Talmont and Port Varilon are in constant competition for the market for fishing, giving that Talmont sits on the converging site of the three rivers in the Fields of Glory while Port Varilon is right along the shore and has access to a large area of water. Sorcette is a city with a high population of Elves and holds one of the magical academies of Taladoun. The city itself sits on a convergence of powerful magical leylines for Taladoun and Sor-Delias, the magical school dedicated to Illusionary magic is said to be placed directly on the highest nexus of the power, giving the school access to all kinds of raw magic to fuel their experiments. A good number of magical items come out of the school for all of Taladoun, especially items dealing with illusion magic. The Fields of Glory have many religions that intertwine and contrast, depending on the area. Baur and Arcus are revered on the Great Wall, one being a War God and the other being the God that created the Archons that initially saved the Fields from Lissandra's army during the Demon Wars. Lacenne has a strong following both in Gordiman Village where the residents rely on the natural world for their income and survival and in Sorcette where there is a large number of Elves. Korum is beloved in the Dwarven kingdom of Whitestone Citadel, while Kyros, Wyrtas and Bahamut all have shrines in Port Varilon for various reasons (Kyros to pray for safety from his storms, Wyrtas for safe travel on the seas and Bahamut because a large number of the Port Varilon residents are Dragonborn, like many other ports and shore-lining settlements). Finally, Talmont sees at least a slight following of nearly all the Gods, given that it is the largest of the cities and is centralized, making it a prime stop for most travelers, regardless of faith. The Central Region The Central Region is the largest of all eight regions, though it's landmass is mostly dominated by the mountain range that acts as it's eastern barrier to the Eastern Kingdoms. Due to the large amount of mountains, the most common race in the Central Region is the Dwarf race, followed by the Elves. The Dragonborn claim most of the small western shoreline while Humans, Gnomes, Halflings and Tiefling can be spotted in the major cities of the Great Races. For the most part, the Central Region is a peaceful place. Many contribute this fact to the Adventurer's League, which finds it's home in the capital city of Dolite City. The League is essentially a band of mercenaries that take jobs for money, though the kinds of jobs they take are normally with the intent of improving the wealth and health of the people of Taladoun. The Region is not without it's problems, to include a nasty infestation of Lycanthropes due to Zericks creating the curse as punishment to his daughter Erias. The Moon Goddess, however, finds her prison also situated within the Central Region, teaching her worshippers to attack and kill what she considers to be her "bastard children". The Central Region is also home to the Minotaur homeland, Moorinth, which is protected and hidden by the labyrinth that is the Jagged Pass. While the Pass is the easiest means of getting from the Central Region to the Eastern Kingdoms (unless you're a Dwarf or friend enough to those in Shattertalon Keep and have been granted access to the underground tunnels that can lead you to the east), it is by no means a path for the weak or wary. The Minotaurs guard their realm fiercely and while parts of the Pass have been marked by them for travelers, a single step into their realm puts a traveler under their scrutiny and thus allows them to pass judgment on said traveler. At least, that is the way of the Minotaur's culture. For those that earn the respect or gratitude of the Minotaurs, however, they are welcoming and loyal (unless betrayed) and even generous enough to guide some such travelers through the maze of the Pass. There is also something of a political struggle in the Central Region as Dolite City and the southern city of Mortigan Kingdom never quite see eye-to-eye on issues. While there only ever been rumors and talks of war between the two realms, all of Taladoun keep a tense watch over the situation as the two cities have the two largest armies in all of Taladoun, not to mention the fact that each of the cities house one of the magical schools that generate a great portion of power. There are also two great Dwarf cities, though the Thunderpeak Fortress is something of a neutral party, preferring to keep to themselves in the northeastern kingdom. The Dwarves of Shattertalon Keep, however, are more regularly involved with the Region's current events, including supplying weapons and other tools to the rest of the Region and all of Taladoun. It is this city where the great Master Smith Korrigan Longhammer created the legendary weapon of Shattertalon Keep, the Crag Sire. This mighty hammer is now the symbol of whoever rules in Shattertalon Keep and is named so because it is so powerful that striking the ground can, in fact, create (or "sire") crags in the mountains. Humans are very prominent in the cities, as are Gnomes (moreso in the Dwarven cities, naturally) and Halflings (who are so prominent, in fact, that they have their own "Guild" that is based in Dolite City. It is reputed to be a front for the Thieves Guild, but that has never been proven to be true. For the most part, it operates as a Merchant's Guild, Halflings making the greatest merchants with their love for talking) can be found in nearly every city in the Central Region. Tiefling are a rarity, considering that they are despised due to their heritage, though seeing an Aasimar is not unheard of and many times the Archon-children find themselves in positions of wealth or power more easily than other mortals. The economy of the Central Region is the richest in all of Taladoun. Nearly every great city and small village is a rest stop one of it's major roads to get from one place to another and all trade must pass through it's borders. Both Dolite City and Mortigan Kingdom have levied taxes on those merchants who wish to utilize their roads, thus making them extremely wealthy in the process. Shattertalon Keep produces some of the finest weapons and it is public knowledge that they keep a steady trade with Dolite City. Erias' village of worshippers in the Crescent Forest do not produce very many goods, but those things they do produce are made of the purest silver, which can be found in the mines underneath their own village and lake, where Erias is currently trapped by her father Zericks. They sell very little of this silver, however, as it is their main weapon to fight against their Lycanthrope enemies. Like the Fields of Glory, there is a wealth of different religions in the Central Region. Lacenne, Korum and Erias are the most prominent while Lunias has her strongest following in the Central Region where many traveling merchants pray to her for good favor. Saul has a shrine, if not a temple, in every city and the great Temple of Arcus can be found in Dolite City. Baur has very few followers in the Central region, as does Kyros, Wyrtas and Soltaire. Arienne has a temple in every major city minus Erias' village in the Crescent Forest and many of the major roads have shrines to her that act as safe resting spots for travelers. The only known Temple of Zericks can be found to those who gain entry to Thunderpeak Fortress, as the Dwarves there believe that they belong underground in the shadows, rather than in the light of Saul. Gorgon claims nearly all of the southern end of the mountains where his Minotaur people have settled and it is customary to offer some kind of tribute at one of his shrines during your travel through the area. Failure to do so may even cause the Minotaurs to attempt to capture and pass judgment on those few stingy or foolish travelers. Eastern Kingdoms The Eastern Kingdoms are an treacherous place, home to one of the most dangerous places in the world, the Shadow Glade. However, there are a multitude of other locations in the Eastern Kingdoms that are still beautiful sights to see. One such place are the Aerie Cliffs. The western boundaries of the Eastern Kingdom are lined with the mountain range that splits the Kingdoms from the Central Region, ending in cliffs that are easily high enough to hold an entire city on their vertical base. As a matter of fact, they do; The Dwarves of the Aerie Cliffs are the famous Griffinclaw Clan have built their entire city into the side of the cliffs, giving them an interesting vantage point for their Griffin mounts. To the north east of the Aerie Cliffs is the city of Kal'Tahm. Home of the infamous School of the Dark Arts, Kal'Tahm has an interesting take on it's army and the magics it implores. The highest ranking members of the Kal'Tahm army are Necromancers who regularly bolster their forces with the Undead creations they make. The city itself is something of a unique political powder keg with a multitude of different factions always fighting from the shadows to gain the upperhand. The city is governed by a council with each faction having a ruling representative. To the south of Kal'Tahm is Lake Lautence, home to the town of Lautence. The town makes it's trade by mining out the gems that rest at the bottom of the lake itself, creating some of the most beautiful jewelry in all of Taladoun. South east of the lake and town of Lautence is the Kalimor forest, home to one of the few forest-dwelling Elf clans left in Taladoun. These Elves have built the village of Delas Sol and are one of the only lines of protection the Kingdoms have against the Shadow Glade, a dark place tainted by the Demon Wars that regularly spawns dark, horrifying terrors. It's said that the Demon Wars opened a rift to the Abyss in the Shadow Glade that has yet to be closed and the rift allows the Demons, Devils and other monsters to climb back through to the Material Plane. The economy of the Eastern Kingdoms is contained within it's borders. Few caravans make their way out through the Jagged Pass, but the Dwarves of the Aerie Cliffs do regularly do business with their allies in the Shattertalon Keep in the Central Region. Lautence has crafted something of a port settlement at the mouth of the river that flows into Lake Lautence, which regularly receives ships from the port cities of the Central Regions. Many of the other civilzations of Taladoun are wary of doing business with Kal'Tahm, though Lautence regularly acts as a third party during trades. The Elves of Delas Sol are hesitant to trade with outsiders.